This patent relates to gaming, and, in particular, to gaming with fee-type wagering.
U.S. Reissue Pat. No. 35,864 discloses a gaming system using pari-mutuel wagering. According to the '864 patent, pari-mutuel wagering is a system by which all players compete for a common pool of funds to which each player contributes. The players also contribute to a pool that is distributed to the house for operating the gaming system. Players may contribute to the pool once, on a per wager basis, on a per game basis, on a per payout basis, or on an hourly basis. The '864 patent states that profits for the house are thus derived from a collection system rather than odds or player skill. The '864 patent further states that the player skills will be pitted against one another rather than against the house.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,879 discloses a gaming system with a wager accounting module. The player is required to place a wager for each hand of blackjack played. If the player does not accept a wager equal to a previous wager or place a new wager within a predetermined amount of time, then the wager accounting module automatically wagers either a wager equal to the previous wager or a minimum required bet.